Method and system for selectively performing call information query

ABSTRACT

A system and method for providing call information query stores modified call information associated with a telephone number within the local databases of a service provider&#39;s local network. The modified call information enables a service provider to unilaterally alter how calls are routed and rated. The service switching points (SSPs) located within a same local network are equipped with modified intelligent network or advanced intelligent network software that enables the local SSPs to receive remote call information resulting from a remote query performed by a remote SSP. The local SSPs analyze the remote call information and generate queries to their local databases to obtain modified call information. New services requiring modified call information can then be implemented based upon the modified call information received as a result of the queries.

RELATED APPLICATIONS

The present patent document is a continuation of U.S. patent applicationSer. No. 10/891,831 (still pending), filed Jul. 15, 2004, which is acontinuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 10/321,789 (now U.S.Pat. No. 6,785,373), filed Dec. 17, 2002, which is a continuation ofU.S. patent application Ser. No. 09/847,648 (now U.S. Pat. No.6,522,740), filed May 2, 2001, which is a continuation of U.S. patentapplication Ser. No. 09/524,498 (now U.S. Pat. No. 6,249,577), filedMar. 13, 2000, which is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser.No. 09/018,973 (now U.S. Pat. No. 6,055,304), filed Feb. 5, 1998, theentirety of each of which is hereby incorporated by reference.

BACKGROUND

The present invention relates generally to telecommunications systemsand more specifically to call information queries.

A modern telecommunications network generally includes at least onenational or regional service management system (SMS), at least one localSMS, at least one service control point (SCP), at least one signaltransfer point (STP), at least one tandem switch, and at least oneservice switching point (SSP). A national or regional SMS includes amaster database that contains information for a given service orapplication. The information contained within the national or regionalSMS can be concurrently utilized by multiple networks that are operatedby different local telephone service providers. A local SMS storesinformation and acts as an interface between the national or regionalSMS and an SCP. An SCP can include an SCP data base that can containcall information consisting of call routing and/or call ratinginformation. The call information contained within an SCP database canbe downloaded from the national or regional SMS via a local SMS.Additionally, an SCP receives queries requesting the return of callinformation. These queries are generated by an SSP. An SCP responds tothe query by providing call information to an SSP.

An SSP comprises a high speed switch that transfers voice and datacommunications within the network. A central office is a call routingcenter that contains one or more switches that may or may not beequipped with intelligent network (IN) software or advanced intelligentnetwork (AIN) software. An SSP comprises a central office containing oneor more switches that is/are equipped with either IN or AIN software.Both the IN and AIN software equipped SSPs can generate queries. Queriesare generated when certain predetermined conditions or thresholds aresatisfied. When the conditions or thresholds are satisfied, a triggerwithin the IN or AIN software equipped SSPs is activated which in turngenerates the query. Queries are requests for information associatedwith a telephone number that are transmitted from an SSP to an SCPdatabase. Queries can contain both the telephone number for whichassociated information is requested and additional data that identifiesthe type of information that is requested. An STP comprises a high speedswitch that transfers signaling commands within the network. An STPtransfers queries and responses between an SCP and an SSP. An STP alsotransfers control signals between networks. A tandem switch transfersvoice or data communications between networks.

A service provider typically utilizes a telecommunications network, asdescribed above, to provide telephone service to its customers within alocal network. A local network generally comprises thetelecommunications network described above and is operated by anindividual service provider. The local network typically has geographicboundaries and can contain one or more SSPs. Local networks operated bydifferent service providers can have overlapping geographic boundaries.However, each service provider maintains control over the componentsthat comprise the local network.

Each of the SSPs within the local network provide multiple customerswith access to the network. Accordingly, individual customers gainaccess to the network through one of the SSPs. Each customer is assigneda unique ten digit telephone number which enables calls to be routed tothem via their designated SSP. The first six digits of the telephonenumber, the NPA/NXX, identify the specific SSP that the customer isassigned to and thus facilitates the routing of calls to the customer.Each service provider maintains call routing information that isassociated with each ten digit telephone number that also facilitatesthe routing of calls to the customer. The call routing informationindicates the customer's assigned SSP and identifies the location of thecustomer within the network. Each service provider also maintains callrating information to facilitate the proper rating of calls placed to acustomer. The call rating information identifies the location of thecustomer and is used to calculate the cost associated with terminating acall to the customer. Individual customers are typically assigned to aspecific SSP based upon the customers' geographic location. The SSPswith a service provider's network are utilized to provide customers withaccess to the network.

Protocols are utilized to ensure that communications both with localnetworks and between local networks can be completed seamlessly. Globalprotocols are implemented by service providers to ensure thatcommunications between service providers occur properly. Currently,global protocols are being established that allow information to beshared by and exchanged between multiple service providers. These globalprotocols include specifications regarding the routing of calls. Theseglobal protocols may also specify the format of information maintainedin databases and the manner in which information in databases can beaccessed. Specifically, the global protocols may limit or restrict thenumber of queries that can be performed for a given telephone numberduring the completion of a call. These global protocols also reflect thereferred practices of sharing information amongst service providers andrestricting modifications to this information as well as limiting theaccess to this information by limiting the number or queries that can beperformed.

One such global protocol is embodied in service provider numberportability (SPNP) Service Provider Number Portability (SPNP) iscurrently under development by several network hardware and softwareproviders and will allow customers to retain their existing ten digittelephone number when they change from one service provider to anotherservice provider. According to the SPNP specifications, when a call isplaced by a calling party to a called party, the SSP that connects thecalling party to the local network (calling party's SSP) must firstdetermine whether the call is placed to a telephone number (calledparty's telephone number) that has potentially been transferred from oneservice provider to another service provider. If the number haspotentially been ported, the calling party's SSP will launch a query toits local SCP database to obtain information on where to route the call.

The query contains both the called party's telephone number and otherdata that identifies the type of information, corresponding to thetelephone number, that the SSP is requesting. One common requestincluded within a query is for call routing information associated witha telephone number. Upon receipt of the query, the local SCP will searchits database to locate call routing information associated with thecalled party's telephone number. If such information is found, it istransmitted by the SCP to the calling party's SSP. Once the call routinginformation is received from the local SCP database, the calling party'sSSP forwards a special call-setup signaling message to the other SSPs inthe call path to advise them that a query has been performed. The otherSSPs that are in the call path may include SSPs that are within adifferent local network and are operated by a different serviceprovider. Bit m of a Forward Call Indicator (FCI) field, which isincluded within the call-setup message, is used as a query indicator tosignify whether a database query has been performed. The call-setupmessage also identifies where to terminate the call.

The technical requirements that have been documented to support the SPNPspecifications expressly state that once a database query has beenperformed, no additional queries need be performed regardless of thenumber of subsequent SSPs involved in the call path. Each SSP within thecall path can determine whether a query has been performed by analyzingbit m of the FCI. Thus, according to the SPNP specifications, once aquery has been performed by a SSP, no other queries can be performed byany other SSP.

The implementation of global protocols such as SPNP results inundesirable limitations. First, every service provider that implements aglobal protocol must agree and adhere to the predetermined requirementsof the protocol. Some of the protocol requirements include: the type ofinformation contained within call information databases; the format ofinformation within the call information databases; and the manner inwhich call information can be accessed by different network components.These global protocols also limit a single service provider's ability tomodify the protocol because the changes must be accepted and implementedby all the service providers that adopt the protocol. Moreover, thesechanges must be implemented in every local network operated by eachservice provider that adopts the global protocol. Additionally, theglobal protocols, such as SPNP limit the number or queries for a singlecall. Accordingly, these protocols restrain an individual serviceprovider from accessing additional information through the use ofadditional queries for a single call.

A service provider who wishes to introduce new service that requires amodification of a global protocol, for example the existing format ofcall information within a database, may not be able to implement such amodification. Because global protocols such as SPNP require that allinformation be obtained from a single query, changes in informationwithin a local network must be reflected in all the local networks thatshare information. Therefore, all of the service providers would have tomodify their formats in accordance with the modifications implemented bythe service provider that seeks to introduce a new service. Anindividual service provider, however, has no way of mandating that otherservice provider's accept or implement the desired modifications.Accordingly, there is no way for an individual service provider toensure that a protocol modification will be universally adopted.Therefore, a service provider cannot unilaterally introduce a protocolmodification that may be necessary to provide a new service. Thus, aservice provider may be limited in services that it can introduce. Asystem is needed that allows a service provider to unilaterallyintroduce new services requiring modifications of global protocolparameters while still supporting the existing global protocols.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a portion of a telecommunications networkof a preferred embodiment.

FIG. 2 is a flow chart for a method of a preferred embodiment forproviding call information requery.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram of telecommunications network of a preferredembodiment.

FIG. 4 is a flow chart for a method of a preferred embodiment forproviding local number portability requery.

FIG. 5 is a block diagram of a query generation module of a preferredembodiment.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The present embodiment enables a service provider to unilaterallyintroduce new services that require modification of global protocols,while still supporting the existing global protocols. A service providercan introduce a new service by locally implementing modifications of theglobal protocol. Because the modification of the global protocol is donelocally, it does not require uniform acceptance or implementation by allservice providers adopting the global protocol. The service provider canselectively utilize the modifications to provide services dependent uponthe modifications. This allows the service provider to unilaterallyintroduce new services that require modifications of global protocols.

By way of example, FIG. 1 shows portions of three different localnetworks 10, 50, 80 that are operated by different service providers.Dividing line 70 signifies the boundaries of local networks 10, 50, 80.The local network 10 of customer A includes a current SSP 20, a database18, an SCP 14 and an STP 16. A first remote local network 50 includes aremote SSP 60, a database 58, an SCP 54, and an STP 56. A second remotelocal network 80 includes and STP 81, and a remote central office 82.The switches and databases communicate with one another via a high speedsignaling protocol such as Signaling System 7 (SS7). Database 58contains remote call information corresponding to one or more telephonenumbers. The remote call information can include call routinginformation and/or call rating information. Database 18 contains callinformation associated with customer A's telephone number that has beenmodified. The modified call information consists of modified callrouting information and modified call rating information. The modifiedcall rating information is used to assess the proper costs associatedwith a new service. The modified call information can also include anyother call information that it used to provide a call service. Themodified call information can be created by revising call information inan existing format, by changing the format of call information or byadding additional information not previously present in the databases.Database 58 does not contain the modified call information because themodifications were only implemented within local network 10.

The current SSP 20 and the remote SSP 60 are equipped with modified INor AIN software. To support the present embodiment, current SSP 20receives remote call information corresponding to a telephone number,analyzes the remote call information and generates a query to obtainmodified call information. To perform these identified functions,current SSP 20 preferably includes a query generation module 400including means for receiving call information 402, means for analyzingcall information 404, and means for generating a query 406, as depictedin FIG. 5. Means for receiving call information 402 comprises hardwarepreferably comprising a telecommunications switch as well known by thoseskilled in the art. Alternatively, means for receiving the callinformation 402 can comprise a combination of hardware and computerreadable program code written in any suitable high level programminglanguage. Each of means 404 and 406 preferably comprises computerreadable program code written in any suitable programming language andimplemented on an analog or a digital computer utilizing any suitableoperating system. Alternatively, each of means 404 and 406 can comprisehardware in the form of a hardwired computer, an integrated circuit, ora combination of hardware and computer readable program code.

The current SSP 20 can receive remote call information from eitherremote SSP 60 or remote central office 82. The remote call informationcan result from a first query performed by the remote SSP 60. The remotecall information received from either remote SSP 60 or remote centraloffice 82 is analyzed by SSP 20 to determine whether to place a query todatabase 18. Some examples of when a query is appropriate include whenthe remote call information does not contain all the data needed bycurrent SSP 20 to either route or rate the call or when the remote callinformation is in a format different from that required by current SSP20. If necessary, a query can be generated to database 18 to obtainmodified call information associated with customer A's telephone number.

Referring now to FIGS. 1 and 2, service provider 10 seeks to introduce anew service that uses a modification of the call information associatedwith the telephone number of customer A. Service provider 10 can proceedto implement the new service by modifying (FIG. 2, 202) its own callinformation database 18 to include the modified call information, forcustomer A's telephone number, as appropriate to implement the newservice. Both local networks 10, 50 implement a global protocol such asSPNP that prescribes the format of information within databases 18, 58and that limits the number of queries that can be performed for a singlecall. Local network 80 does not implement such a global protocol.Accordingly, all modifications of parameters proscribed in the globalprotocol should be implemented in both local networks 10, 50 to ensureeffective communications between the networks 10, 50. Local Network 80does not include a call information database. Calls are routed basedupon the dialed NPA/NXX for a called telephone number. Thus, modifiedrouting information is not incorporated into local network 80.Accordingly, the modified call information created within local network10, should be incorporated into the databases within local networks 10,50. However, since the service provider operating local network 10cannot mandate the adoption of the modifications because they deviatefrom the global protocol, the modified call information is notincorporated into call information database 58 of remote local network50.

When caller B places a call to customer A, remote SSP 60 will perform aremote query in accordance with the global protocol to obtain callinformation associated with customer A's telephone number. Remote SSP 60will then route the call based upon the call information obtained fromthe remote query. Because the modified call information has not beimplemented within local network 50, remote SSP 60 only has access toremote call information that is not modified. Accordingly, theunmodified remote call information will be transferred to current SSP 20as the call is routed by remote SSP 60. Current SSP receives the remotecall information from SSP 60 as indicated in step 204 of FIG. 2.However, the remote call information received from SSP 60 does notinclude the modifications necessary to implement the new service. Uponreceipt of the remote call information from remote SSP 60, current SSP20 analyzes the remote call information (step 206) and determines thatthe remote call information does not contain the necessarymodifications. Current SSP 20 then generates a requery (step 208) todatabase 18 to retrieve the modified call information. Current SSP 20receives the modified call information (step 210) and can terminate thecall or effectuate the new service (step 212) by properly routing andrating the call or by effectuating the new service in accordance withthe modified call information.

When caller C places a call to customer 23, remote central office 82will analyze the dialed NPA/NXX and route the call based upon the dialednumbers. Provided that caller C dials the proper number for customer A'stelephone number, the call will be routed to current SSP 20. Current SSP20 receives the remote call routing information (FIG. 2, step 204) fromcentral office 82. However, the remote call information received fromcentral office 82 does not include the modifications necessary toimplement the new service. Upon receipt of the remote call information,current SSP 20 analyzes the remote call information (step 206) anddetermines that the remote call information does not contain thenecessary modifications. Current SSP 20 then generates a query (step208) to database 18 to retrieve the modified call information. CurrentSSP 20 receives the modified call information (step 210) and canterminate the call or effectuate the new service (step 212) by properlyrouting and rating the call or by effectuating the new service inaccordance with the modified call information.

By way of further example, the system and method described above can beused to implement specific services such as geographic numberportability (GNP). GNP theoretically allows customers to retain theirten digit telephone number when their telephone number is ported. Atelephone number is ported whenever a customer moves to a new geographiclocation whereby the customer is either connected to an SSP that differsfrom their previous SSP or the customer is relocated in a different ratecenter or rate district.

FIG. 3 shows two different local networks 110, 150 that are operated bytwo different service providers. Dividing line 170 signifies theboundaries of local networks 110, 150. Both local networks 110, 150implement the global protocol SPNP as described above. Thus, the numberof queries that can be performed for a single call are limited.Accordingly, all modifications of call information, including revisionsand changes of call information data formats are preferably uniformlyincorporated into all local networks to ensure effective communicationsbetween networks. Also, a single service provider cannot unilaterallydictate modifications of call information. Thus, all current callinformation preferably share a common format in each service provider'sdatabases and are preferably concurrently updated in each serviceprovider's databases.

In this example, customer A has moved geographically within localnetwork 110 from prior location 121 to the current location. Customer Ahas been reassigned from prior SSP 120 to current SSP 122 but hasretained the ten digit number previously associated with prior SSP 120.Thus, customer A's telephone number has been ported. Current callinformation is created for customer A to reflect the change in locationand the reassignment to current SSP 122. Current call informationpreferably includes revised or updated call rating and call routinginformation associated with a telephone number. Current call informationcan also comprise new parameters of information associated with atelephone number or any other information which would allow a serviceprovider to bill any changes uniquely associated with portability. Thecreation of current call information ensures that calls directed tocustomer A will be properly routed the customer A at the current SSP 122and that the additional charges associated with the additional routingcan be properly billed.

Current call information for customer A consisting of revised callrouting and rating information as discussed above has been created. Thecurrent call information for customer A has been stored within the SCPdatabase 114 of local network 110 but has not been stored in the SCPdatabase 154 or the regional SMS 112. Because the service is uniquelyoffer within local network 110, there are many possible occurrenceswhich can result in SCP database 154 not having current callinformation. Accordingly, SCP database 114 contains the current callinformation for customer A while SCP database 154 contains the priorcall information for customer A which relates the prior location atprior SSP 120. Thus, if a call directed to customer A is placed innetwork 150, remote SSP 160 Will obtain prior call information and willroute the call to prior SSP 120. However, the call can not be terminatedto customer A because he is now located at current SSP 122.

Prior SSP 120 receives the prior call information, analyzes the priorcall information, and generates a requery to obtain current callinformation. Prior SSP 120 preferably includes a query generation module400, as described above and depicted in FIG. 5, enabling it to receiveprior call information, analyze the prior call information, and generatea requery. Prior SSP 120 can ignore the query indicator set by remoteSSP 160 after analyzing the prior call information. Prior SSP 120 cangenerate a requery to SCP database 114 to obtain current callinformation for customer A. Upon receiving the current call information,prior SSP 120 can properly route the call to customer A at current SSP122. Additionally, any added costs associated with the rerouting of thecall to current SSP 122 can be properly rated according to the currentcall information.

Referring now to FIGS. 3 and 4, a call originates when a calling party161 dials the ten digit telephone number, the called telephone number,for customer A. The called telephone number is received by the remoteSSP 160. The remote SSP 160, which supports SPNP, determines whether thecalled telephone number is portable by analyzing the first six digits orNPA/NXX of the called telephone number. If the called telephone numberis portable, i.e. open to porting, the remote SSP 160 performs a remotequery to its local SCP database 154 to obtain call routing informationfor the called telephone number. The SCP database 154 searches itsdatabase and locates the prior call information for the called telephonenumber, which associates the called telephone number with prior SSP 120.The SCP database 154 returns the prior call information for the calledtelephone number to the remote SSP 160.

After the remote SSP 160 receives the prior call information, the remoteSSP 160 sets a query indicator to reflect that a query has beenperformed. Because the SCP database 154 doesn't contain the current callinformation to reflect customer A's move from prior SSP 120 to currentSSP 122, the call will be routed to prior SSP 120. In addition, theprior call information and the query indicator will be forwarded toprior SSP 120.

Accordingly, prior SSP 120 receives the call (FIG. 4, step 302) fromremote SSP 160. The prior SSP 120 then attempts to terminate the call(step 304) based upon the prior call information forwarded to it by theremote SSP 160. However, because customer A is no longer located atprior SSP 120, the call cannot be terminated (step 306) by prior SSP120. Additionally, because the remote SSP 160 performed the remotequery, the query indicator will show that a remote query has alreadybeen performed and according to the SPNP specification, no furtherqueries can be performed by prior SSP 120 or any other SSP.

The embodiment enables the prior SSP 120, that was unable to terminatethe call, to perform a second query, a requery to its local SCP database114, when customer A's number is not found at prior SSP 120. Accordingto the presently preferred embodiment, the requery is generated upon thesatisfaction of two criteria. First, the prior SSP 120 that receives thecall determines whether the called telephone number called is anunallocated number (step 308). To determine whether the called telephonenumber is unallocated, the prior SSP 120 identifies whether the calledtelephone number is located at the prior SSP 120 that received the callor whether the called telephone number is potentially located at anotherSSP. This determination can be made by determining whether the calledtelephone number is assigned at prior SSP 120. Next, the prior SSP 120determines whether the first six digits of the number (NPA-NXX) is opento porting (310). This determination is preferably made by analyzing theIN or AIN software in the prior SSP 120 to identify whether the priorSSP's 120 trigger has been set to launch a requery when the specificcombination of NPA-NXX is received and found to be unallocated. Theprior SSP 120 trigger can be programmed to launch a requery when anypredetermined combination or combinations of NPA-NXX are included withina called telephone number that cannot be terminated by prior SSP 120.

After the prior SSP 120 has determined that both of the above criteriaare satisfied, the prior SSP 120 launches a requery (step 312) to theSCP database 114. The requery consists of both the called telephonenumber and additional data identifying the type of information requestedby the prior SSP 120. The SCP 114 searches its database for current callinformation, including current call routing information and current callrating information, for the called telephone number and returns suchinformation if it is found. The SCP 114 locates current call informationwhich has been updated in the local SCP database 114, that reflectscustomer A's reassignment from prior SSP 120 to current SSP 122. Basedupon the current call information, the prior SSP 120 can properly routethe call (step 318) to the current SSP 122 that services customer A andan the proper cost for the call can be determined. Accordingly, currentSSP 122 can terminate the call (step 320) to customer A by establishinga communication channel front remote SSP 160 to current SSP 122 viatandem switches 158, 118.

According to another aspect of the invention, the modification to thesoftware within the SSP 120 includes a counter to prevent a potentialfor looping whereby continuous queries are launched when a calledtelephone number cannot be located and a call cannot be terminated. Thecounter can be sent to limit the maximum number of requeries allowed tobe launched. A preferred counter setting is to limit the number ofrequeries to one. The counter is incremented (step 316) following step312 if no current call routing information is found for the calledtelephone number after one requery has been executed by prior SSP 120.According to one aspect of the invention, a second requrery can begenerated in an attempt to obtain current call information. According toanother aspect of the invention, if no current call information is foundthe call cannot be terminated and no further requeries will beperformed.

The databases as shown are both internal and external to the SCPs.However, the databases can also be configured as part of the STPs asknown to those skilled in the art. Accordingly, the depiction of thedatabases as internal or external to the SCPs should not limit thepossible database configurations to those shown in the drawings.

The current or modified call information can be contained within asingle database within a local network as described above.Alternatively, the current or modified call information can be containedwithin a plurality of databases within a local network. The databasescan be updated with current or modified call information in severaldifferent manners. Typically, the databases will be linked to at leastone other database, such as a local SMS. Additionally, the databases canbe linked to a regional SMS. The link with the regional SMS enablescurrent or modified call information, which is uploaded into thenational or regional SMS to be downloaded from the regional SMSdatabases. This downloading is effectuated by channeling the currentcall information from the regional SMS through the local SMS andultimately to the databases. The databases can also be updated withcurrent or modified call information directly via a local SMS. The localSMS can be updated with current or modified call information by localservice provider that has access to the local SMS. This current ormodified call information can then be transferred directly from thelocal SMS to the database.

The hardware and software that comprise the SSP switches are availablefrom a number of different switch vendors. The computer software thatenables the SSPs to function in an IN or AIN environment and implementthe present embodiment can be written in any suitable high levelprogramming language. Typically, the individual switch vendor will havea preferred programming language. Additionally, this code can beimplemented on any operating system or platform that is capable ofsupporting IN or AIN. These languages and operating platforms are wellknown to those skilled in the art.

It is to be understood that a wide range of changes and modifications tothe embodiments described above will be apparent to those skilled in theart and are contemplated. It is therefore intended that the foregoingdetailed description be regarded as illustrative rather than limiting,and that it be understood that it is the following claims, including allequivalents, that are intended to define the spirit and scope of theinvention.

1. A method of processing a call, the method comprising: analyzing callinformation for a called telephone number to determine if the callinformation is current; obtaining modified call information for thecalled telephone number in response to determining that the callinformation is not current; routing a call using the modified callinformation; and regulating a number of attempts to obtain modified callinformation that can be made.
 2. The method of claim 1, furthercomprising: receiving call information for a called telephone number. 3.The method of claim 1, wherein the call information is received from aremote location.
 4. The method of claim 1, further comprising: storingthe modified call information for the called telephone number in a datastorage device.
 5. The method of claim 4, wherein storing the modifiedcall information for the called telephone number in a data storagedevice comprises storing modified call routing information for thecalled telephone number.
 6. The method of claim 4, wherein storing themodified call information for the called telephone number in a datastorage device comprises storing modified call rating information forthe called telephone number.
 7. The method of claim 4, wherein storingthe modified call information for the called telephone number in a datastorage device comprises storing modified call routing information andmodified call rating information for the called telephone number.
 8. Themethod of claim 4, wherein storing the modified call information for thecalled telephone number in a data storage device comprises storingmodified call information for the called telephone number in response tothe called telephone number being ported to a new location.
 9. Themethod of claim 1, wherein analyzing call information to determine ifthe call information is current comprises: determining whether thecalled telephone number is unallocated.
 10. The method of claim 1,wherein analyzing call information to determine if the call informationis current comprises: determining whether the called telephone number isopen to porting.
 11. The method of claim 1, wherein obtaining modifiedcall information for the called telephone number in response to adetermination that the call information is not current comprises:performing a search to obtain modified call routing information.
 12. Themethod of claim 1, wherein obtaining modified call information for thecalled telephone number in response to a determination that the callinformation is not current comprises: performing a search to obtainmodified call routing information and modified call rating information.13. The method of claim 1, wherein routing a call using the modifiedcall information comprises: routing the call to a new location using themodified call information.
 14. The method of claim 1, wherein routing acall using the modified call information comprises: routing the call toa switch using the modified call information.
 15. The method of claim 1,wherein routing a call using the modified call information comprises:routing a call to a service switching point using the modified callinformation.
 16. The method of claim 1, wherein routing a call using themodified call information comprises: routing a call to a service nodeusing the modified call information.
 17. The method of claim 1, whereinrouting a call using the modified call information comprises: routing acall to an intelligent peripheral using the modified call information.18. The method of claim 1, wherein routing a call using the modifiedcall information comprises: routing a call to a voicemail system usingthe modified call information.
 19. A computer-readable storage mediumcomprising a set of instructions for processing a call, the set ofinstructions to direct a processor to perform acts of: analyzing callinformation for a called telephone number to determine if the callinformation is current; obtaining modified call information for thecalled telephone number in response to determining that the callinformation is not current; routing a call using the modified callinformation; and regulating a number of attempts to obtain modified callinformation that can be made.
 20. A system for processing a call, thesystem comprising: a network element operative to analyze callinformation for a called telephone number to determine if the callinformation is current, to obtain modified call information for thecalled telephone number in response to determining that the callinformation is not current, to route a call using the modified callinformation, and to regulate a number of attempts to obtain modifiedcall information that can be made.